Home Decor

So as promised here are the few items I purchased lately to decorate our home.First up is my favorite. It's a mirror I found at TJ Maxx for $40.  I love that is has a silver tone to it, but it's not a bright shiny metal. The size is perfect for the space. Now I'm working on having some curtains made for the windows.

I love the texture in the frame!

For the living room I bought 4 pillows.

It is amazing what a difference that pillows can make!

These I found at another local TJ Maxx. 

The brown ones were $12 each and the white ones were $16.99 each.

What do yall think?

Now if I could just find something to go on these large empty walls!

Weekend Recap

Did ya miss me? This was supposed to post Monday, but I put the date as 8/29/2012 by mistake!

I am recovering for our big bbq we had yesterday. We decided to throw a just because party since he hadn't had one in a while.  We had so many friends over & would you believe these are the only pics I snapped...

All the yummy meat...

 the yummy drinks...

 the yummy dessert!

I have a funny story about the dessert. One of the hubby's friends made those strawberry & pineapple no bake cheesecakes. They were delicious. Once all the single ladies heard a man had made these desserts, they were on him like white on rice. I couldn't believe how many women started talking to him. He was so shocked that he said he was going to start baking for all our dinner parties and bbqs. LOL! One of the other single guys said, "man, I need to learn how to make cheesecake!" So the old saying that a way to man's heart is through his stomach...I guess that applies to women as well!

Sunday the hubby & I celebrated his little cousin's 11th birthday. We bought her a small cake & a gift.

 (excuse quality, I used my point & shoot camera)

Sunday night I of course watched True Blood.

I am so sick of this witch Marni! I can't wait til this Sunday to see the whole war between witches & vamps. I'm sure we all know who will win in the end.

New Phone

I got a new phone yesterday. My poor blackberry had been dropped 1 too many times and wasn't funtioning properly. It kept dying each time I accessed the internet. Luckily my friend was ready to upgrade & sold me his Samsung Galaxy S for $50.  Can't beat that price with a stick! And I didn't have to renew my contract, woot woot!

So here she is:

I hate her.  I love the apps, the vibrancy, etc etc. But I can't stand the touchscreen. Maybe I am the only one who feels this way. But I loved my BB keyboard. It's gonna take some getting used to, but so far that is my one & only major complaint.

I FINALLY did a little decorating. We repainted the living/dining room last year and since then our walls have been bare. When it comes to interior design, my mind just doesn't function. I didn't want to just buy anything so I'm taking babay steps. I bought 1 mirror for the dining room and 2 pillows for the couch. That's it! I still have 2 huge blank walls in our living room. I have no idea what to do! And I still don't have curtains for all the windows which is driving me crazy. I do know I want navy blue and white chevron print curtains for the dining room to offset the stripes.

I'll post pics in my weekend recap of the few items I have bought. I'm going to go out and look some more today. AGHH!

Have a great weekend!

Laissez les Bons Temps Rouler

We officially booked our rooms for my birthday weekend in New Orleans next month! I LOVE that city! Thanks to my casino points in Vegas we got 2 nights at the W New Orleans. I am ready to go to Cafe Du Mode & have some coffee & a beignet.

I am so excited about our little weekend getaway!

I read on Jassi's Girl's blog about Kim Kardashian's wedding. It sparked my curiosity so I went to Geary'sBeverly Hills website to look at her wedding registry. All I can say is WOW! Why would one couple need so many vases? And why does anyone need ash trays that cost damn near $1000 to put out a cigarette?  I admit, I love to watch the Kardashian's but I think Kim & Kris's wedding wasn't about true love. That's just my opinion.  Khloe & Lamar seem more in love after only dating & getting married in 1 month! I can't wait to watch the wedding special in October though.

While we're on the topic of weddings, did anyone read/see the story about the girl who wore a 127 year -old wedding dress? It was first worn in 1884 my her great-great grandmother. I love that her family has that tradition. You don't see many brides do this. I shot one wedding where the bride wore her mother's dress. And she got married in the same church her mother & father had gotten married in.

30 Day Photography Challenge

I saw this on pinterest (original idea via HERE) and I think I may participate!  

Who wants to join in?

Source: whitepeachphoto.com via LC on Pinterest

Sensuous Nude

Yesterday I made a quick stop at the mall to refill on some beauty items from Estee Lauder. I happened to catch one of those free makeup gift bag deals. YAY me! The sales lady gave me  a free sample of their new perfume, Senuous Nude. OMG, it smells so good! I'm going to add it to my birthday or Christmas gift list for sure.

 

I love the gift with purchase deals. My hubby said "Another make up bag?" Yes, I have that many. I would have more but I sold several on eBay a few years ago. You wouldn't believe how much money people spend on those gifts!

I chose the make-up gift instead of the skin care gift. I absolutely love the colors of the lipstick, gloss, nail polish, & eye shadow. Everything looks & smells so good! :)

The hubby grilled steaks for dinner last night. They were SO good! I am so thankful for a hubby who doesn't mind doing the majority of the cooking! I'm still finding my way around the kitchen.

He also had some Sangria with fresh berries! YUM!!
Great job hubby!

After dinner we watched the Baketball Wives Reunion Part 2. OMG, so much drama!!!

I can't stand all the fighting but I guess that's what makes good reality TV.

This week I'm making plans for a "just because" party we're having this Saturday. We're gonna cook some meat on the grill and have some friends over. I am "planning" on making these fruit skewers if I can find all the fruit at a decent price! I think they'd be a hit!

Source: pizzazzerie.com via LC on Pinterest

Weekend Recap

I hate when the weekend comes to end, don't yall? I always enjoy m,y weekends of relaxation & time with fam & friends.

Friday night we had another movie Friday. The hubby & I went to see The Help. Great movie! Lots of laughs & tears. I truly cannot imagine living in a time like that. Racism is one of my biggest pet peeves. It really boils my blood. I am so glad that we don't live in those times.

Saturday I relaxed during the day while hubby was at work. I did take a pair of my favorite shoes to a shoe repair shop to have the heels repaired. I've never done that so I can't wait to see the results. I should have taken a before picture, but they pretty much looked like this:

I'll post the after pic when I pick the shoes up next weekend!

Saturday night all of the hubby's friends came by & hung out played dominoes.  After the guys left we stayed up & watched Storage Wars. Do any of you watch this?

I have a story about this.  I have a co-worker that always went to these storage auctions.  One day she told me she was going through her latest storage unit items and she across a guest book for a funeral and saw my signature in it. Well come to find out, it was the storage unit that belonged to the deceased father of one of my old high school friends. She was kind enough to save all the important mementos like pictures, medals & awards (he was military) and she brought them to work so I could give them to my friend.  How awesome is that? Most people would have just thrown it all out. Ya never know what you're gonna find in those storage units.

Today I had the amazing pleasure of doing a photo shoot of the cheerleaders & dance team from my old high school. Apparently their photographer had a few choice words with the coach & quit and they needed pictures pronto. I happen to be friends with the team mom and she got me in & they were happy since I'm alumni. It was SO hot though. We were going to take the pics indoors but they forgot to have someone come early to open up the gym & turn the ac on.  Which meant it was hot & stuffy indoors, so we all just dealt with the 100 degree humid weather outdoors.

After the photo shoot I raced home to get ready for a birthday dinner. The birthday girl picked Applebees since there is never a wait there nowadays. I was SO disappointed. We had a party of 15 and EVERYONE's food came out expect mine. 3 people had already finished eating and mine still wasn't there. I finally told the waitress to cancel my order  & I left early. I was determined to make it home in time for True Blood.

Am I only the one that LOVES True Blood? I just can't get enough!

And in one final bit of news. I decided to open an Etsy Shop! I'm going to start selling growth charts! You'll be able to send me 1 or 3 images for your chart.They will be 13"x48" and will measure to 5ft and they will be printed on Photo-tex material. And you can put your child's name on the growth chart! There is a low-tack adhesive on the back for easy hanging & removal. I think they are adorable & I can't wait to get started!  They will be $85.00 which includes s&h!

I know there are a lot of these on Etsy & many are much cheaper. But I didn't see any that offered photos of the child! So hopefully there's an interest for this! :)

So check me out or pass this info along to anyone you think might be interested!

Hot Ghetto Mess

My closet...is a hot ghetto mess! Especially my shoe situation. I bought this shoe rack a few years ago & let me just say, it is a nightmare. I love that it holds a lot of shoes, but honestly having your shoes "exposed" like that is terrible. I cannot believe how much dust collects on my shoes.  

And don't get me wrong, I clean my house, but it when it comes to dusting I suck! There is just too much to dust when you think about it, and shoes are typically the last thing on my mind when I'm in "clean house" mode. I know its because I keep my closet door open. I guess for now I'll have to keep it closed to minimize the dust that gets in.

 I have way too many shoes!

If I still had all the boxes I would throw that shelf out & out them back in the boxes. And buying that many shoe containers can get pricey. So what do yall do to protect your shoes?

I saw this shoe dust cover online, but to me it just looks like a long piece of plastic! ha!

Give away...but not from me

Just a quick little sidenote to let yall know about a give away.

I just started following a new blog: Jassi's Girl. She is hosting a $15 visa gift card give away! She has a cute new blog...so be sure to follow for your chance to win! :)

Interview update

So the interview went great yesterday IMO. Well as great as it could. Do interviewers know that people are going to stumble across SOME of the questions? No matter how much you try to prepare, there's always a question that makes you stumble. Oh well, I did my best and now I have to wait 2-3 weeks for a reply.

My blackberry is slowly dying. I am so sad! I am a die hard blackberry fan.  But I do like all the new droids everyone has. Although I do know quite a few people who have droids with cracked screens bc they dropped them & they can't afford to pay the fee to replace them (even with insurance). So I am debating on what type of phone to get.  I'm with T-mobile so my choices are limited. What's your favorite phone? Does anyone have the HTC driod? That's the one I'm leaning towards.

I can't believe Christmas is about 4 months away! I have GOT to start shopping now. I say that every year but I really want to be prepared this year. I am thinking about getting my brother a nice watch case. I'd like to get him something personalized and "manly." lol! I was thinking of something like this:

For the hubby, I definitely want to get him some Vibrams. I know they are HIDEOUS but everyone says they are the most comfortable shoes. Do you know anyone who has these? My brother & several friends have them & they all say they are the most comfortable shoes ever. I'd probably get an all black pair so it wouldn't be too obvious!

Lots to do before the holidays!

Before I go, don't forget to check out my friend's blog! Mike is a HILARIOUS writer! Just depends on your sense of humor.

New Job...maybe?

I received the MOST exciting news today! It was typical Monday at work until I received an email saying I had been selected for a job interview for this Wednesday. I am beyond thrilled. I have been in the same department and the same position for almost 8 years. Which means I am ready for a change!

So after work I went straight to the mall to pick out a new dress & heels. I went home and dyed my Vegas blonde back to dark brown. Now I am working on my resume but my printer wont work! AGHH! So I will be making a visit to Fedex tomorrow to use their printers. How annoying!

I have a serious question though, is it inappropriate to NOT wear pantyhose in the summer? It is SO hot & humid here and thought of wearing hose already has me sweating! I can always take them off after the interview, but I am considering not even wearing them. I see executives walking around in dress suits with no hose all summer long so I am torn on this issue. What do you think?  I am leaning towards just-wear-them-and-stop-whining-and-take-them-off-afterwards.

I did google this topic and can't get a definite answer. Literally everywhere I searched, the answers varied. Thoughts?

weekend recap

How was everyone's weekend? I had a fabulous weekend with friends & fam.

Friday, the hubby & I stayed in and redboxed 2 movies:

Jumping the Broom

I loved the cast and loved this movie!

Unknown

You can't go wrong with Liam Neeson! This was very suspenseful!

Saturday my friend Shae hosted a dinner party. I forgot my camera so I have absolutely no pictures! But we ate good, drank good, & had a fabulous time!

Sunday, me, my sis-in-law, & my friends Lisa & Shae decided to take a mini road trip to Warm Springs, GA. We went a little dress boutique and did some serious shopping. They had dresses for less than $20 & accessories for less than $2.50. 

Shopping worked up an appetite so we grabbed a quick lunch at a little place & noticed there were bags of water with pennies hanging in them. We asked the employees what that was about & they told us it kept flies away! Say what? So of course I came home & googled this theory and there are many links about this.

While we were there a man approached us and told us there was a new winery down the street & they were having free wine tastings! We were so excited to learn there's a winery only 30 minutes away from us!

 The lotus pond in front of the winery!

It just opened in February and it's small, but it was so worth the visit! We enjoyed some great wine and great conversation! Nothing like a day with the girls t put a smile on your face! :)

Five Guys

Thursday night we (hubby, brother, & I)  FINALLY had our first burger from Five Guys. We had to drive to Auburn which is about 30-45 minutes from us (depending on how fast you drive).

The meal was definitely great, much better than regular fast food. The fries with malt vinegar were the bomb-diggity! YUM!

I hope you're all enjoying your weekend!